


Take a Ride in the Sky

by thehorrorinsymmetry



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, First Kiss, M/M, astronaut au !!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-27
Updated: 2019-08-27
Packaged: 2020-09-27 13:55:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,814
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20408869
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thehorrorinsymmetry/pseuds/thehorrorinsymmetry
Summary: Somehow, making the journey home from orbit isn't the only big thing to happen today.





	Take a Ride in the Sky

If returning to earth at the end of a mission ever begins to feel mundane, something will have gone terribly wrong in Poe’s life.

The protocols are endless, mind-numbingly dull and critically imperative to ensure the continued safety of the station - to say nothing of their impending freefall. They inspire the same mix of feelings they had the previous three times - the blunt tug of knowing he’ll soon leave this strange, beautiful hunk of metal and a healthy dose of excitement at the idea of sleeping in his own bed, of eating real food again. There’s also something new, something that itches with impatience, a kind of anticipation that inspires the same weightlessness as floating 240 miles above the surface of the earth. 

It sends a shiver rolling through his spine as they suit up. He can see it reflected on everyone else’s gazes, in their shared glances as they strap back into the shuttle that carried them so far from home. The shuttle comes back to life under his hands, waking up once again as they prepare to undock from the station and begin the journey back home.

A smooth ride at nearly 28,000 miles an hour, it really puts anything earthbound vehicle to shame. 

Soon enough, mission control tells them it’s time to pull out of orbit. He glances over the displays one more time. “Does anyone need to pee before we hit the road?”

Chuckles come in over the radio. “I’d love a quick coffee to wake up.” Jess chimes in from behind him.

“Let’s hold on that for a bit, I know a great place.” He takes a breath and taps Karé’s arm over the control panel. “Mission control, we’re good to go.”

“Roger that, Commander.” Connix’s voice crackles over the line. “Endurance, you are cleared for deorbit burn.”

“Commencing deorbit burn.”

He watches the curve of the planet below them as the shuttle slows itself. Soon enough the engines ease off and rotate the shuttle, the bright planet shifting below them until only the edge where space cradles their planet remains in view.

Pushing the nose up to the angle of attack, they watch the atmosphere curl around them. Slowly but surely gravity returns to them and presses them into their seats. The utter blackness of space eases into the soft blues of an early morning sky. The shuttle glides them through the four banked rolls and slowly but surely everything waiting for them on the ground begins to grow larger and more discernible.

Finally, 25 miles from touchdown, he takes control. They roll through the Florida skies and he dips into the final approach, wishing like hell he could go for one more lap and stretch this moment out just a bit further. Karé drops the landing gear and they speed past the patches of water and land.

The back wheels hit the ground. He releases the parachute and eases the nose down. They skid to a halt nearly three quarters down the runway and after 14 days and 9.4 million kilometers, Endurance is still.

“Welcome home Endurance, and congratulations on a beautifully successful mission.” 

“Thank you mission control, it’s good to be back.” He reaches over and pats Karé’s shoulder. 

She puts her hand over Poe’s, squeezing it quickly. “Don’t get sentimental on me now, sir.”

He laughs and pulls at the clasps holding his helmet in place. It comes off with a satisfying click and he pulls it off, resting it in his lap. Twisting, he looks back over his shoulder, his gaze catching on Finn. 

Helmet already in his lap, Finn smiles at him. “Nice landing.”

His grin widens. “Thank you.”

Karé clears her throat. “Gonna let me shut this bird down all by myself?”

“Okay, okay,” He twists forward, his heart racing. “Initiating shut down procedures.”

The post-landing protocols means they get to remain inside the cockpit long after landing. Eventually the flight doctor comes in and gives them the all-clear to stretch their legs. As commander, Poe has the honour of being the last to leave - an antiquated tradition, but he feels far too reverent to worry about that as he presses his hand to the control panel one last time. He climbs out of the cockpit and follows Karé down the flight ramp, his movements somewhat clumsy as his body adjusts to the reintroduction of gravity. 

They smile and wave at the handful of photographers and tv crews gathered a small distance away and stick together near the base of the ramp. Endurance stands proud behind them, wearing the black scorch marks as proof of their journey. 

The end of the mission is always organized chaos. Between handing over the shuttle to the ground personnel, medical personnel wanting to ensure nobody is about to keel over in front of the press, and said press wanting their soundbite - all while coming down from a massive adrenaline rush and the sudden ability of their many wondrous body fluids to travel downwards again - usually leaves one without a spare second to have a thought to themselves. 

All Poe wants to do is check on Finn. There are a million and one reasons he can’t but even as others demand his time and attention, he itches with the need to turn until the doctor is in his field of view. It grows stronger as they separate for a quick check over and to change into civvies, the physical separation strange after living on the station..

The tight quarters of a packed station hardly made for an ideal environment to nurture this thing between them - whatever it is - but it’s somehow worse now that they’re back on earth, knowing that he could be so close to something he wants so badly and yet he’s utterly powerless to address it because even returning from a trip off the planet isn’t enough to get out of a meeting. It leaves him feeling even heavier, raw in a way he’s not used to. 

In reality only a couple hours pass before he’s heading to the parking lot, but it feels as if a week has passed since they landed by the time he’s walking towards the parking lot. Enough time has passed for the adrenaline he’d been riding to dissipate and leave him running on fumes, each step one step closer to bed. 

“Hey,”

He spins around and instantly feels lighter, grinning at Finn. “Hey, spaceman. How are you holding up?”

“Good, uh -“ Finn’s lips twist into a slight grimace. “Kind of nauseous, actually. I never realized how heavy I was.”

“You were cleared though, yeah?”

“Oh, yeah, totally up to their exacting standards.” He shrugs, glancing to the side. “Just not used to this kind of readjustment.”

He nods and bites his lip, recalling the hours he’d spent laying in the bathroom after his first landing. “Jury’s still out on if anyone ever does. The first night is usually the worst, though.”

Finn leans against the wall. “You don’t even look that tired. We were in space a few hours ago and you look like it’s just been another day. Is that a pilot thing?”

Heat rolls lazy through his face, filling his cheeks like gas in a vacuum. “Oh, uh - I’m pretty pooped, but it’s good to know I can hide it well.”

Finn smiles, head tilted just so, the same soft look in his gaze as when they’d been watching the earth spin underneath them. 

“Hey, do you have any plans?”

Finn blinks at him. “I don’t know if you saw, but I just got off a spaceship like two hours ago.”

He breathes a laugh. “I have a kind of tradition, after coming back.”

“Yeah?”

“Mhm, I like to lay down and eat some soup.”

Finn raises his eyebrows, considering. “That does sound pretty nice.”

“Pretty nice?” He scoffs. “I’ll have you know I make excellent soup.”

“Yeah?” Finn grins again, nodding slightly. “Okay.”

—

They stop at a grocery store so Poe can pick up some ingredients slightly more impressive than the MREs he’s sure he’ll find in the cabinet. The house itself is sparse, minimal furniture, his own suitcase tucked away in the one bedroom. Finn protests weakly when Poe nudges him towards the couch but settles onto it easily enough, mumbling even as he collapses into it. 

“You’re a doctor and you just got back from a two-week long trip into space. You can afford to take a break this one time.”

“You also just got back from space.”

“Yes,” He grins at Finn from where he’s piling ingredients on the counter. “For the fourth time.”

Finn sends him a look, the effect softened by the warmth in his gaze. “There’s no need to brag.”

He wags his eyebrows. “Almost as good at being in space as I am at making soup.”

Finn breathes a laugh. “You’re not bad.”

“That’s actually exactly what Leia said in my last performance review.”

Finn laughs again, a soft sound that settles low in Poe’s chest and reminds him of floating past bright white walls. He watches the soup bubble and spin when he pushes the spoon through it. Finn is already looking at him when he glances over, but he doesn’t look away, instead holding Poe’s gaze. 

He jumps as the something sizzles loudly. Blinking, he grabs some paper towel and wipes it up, nearly dropping it into the soup when he lets it go a foot above the stove. He pulls his lip between his teeth and musters up all the discipline he’s developed in his nine years as an astronaut to keep from knocking his head against the cupboard.

“You said you were good at making soup, yeah?”

“I just got off a space shuttle a few hours ago, cut me some slack.”

“It’s kind of cute, seeing you like this.” The words are soft, almost as if Finn hadn’t intended to say them. Maybe he hadn’t intended for Poe to hear them. 

He very carefully does not look at Finn as he pours the soup into two bowls. “Like what?”

“Like you’re not completely in your element, for once.”

He blinks, grateful for the short distance he has to cross to place their bowls on the coffee table. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Finn lifts the blanket he’d tucked himself under and sends him an unimpressed look. “We met almost two years ago and I don’t think I’ve ever seen you with a hair out of place.”

“Kind of hard for that to happen when it’s all shaved off.”

Finn rolls his eyes but Poe catches the upward curl of his mouth before he turns his head. He nudges Poe’s shoulder with his own. “Thank you for making me soup.” 

He nudges Finn back. “You’re welcome.”

Several minutes pass quietly as they eat. Finn doesn’t put any distance between them, is close enough for their arms to brush, for the heat of Finn’s body to lick at his side. Even with the uncertainty of what’s to come, his personal post-mission protocol has been massively improved upon with Finn next to him. He places the mostly empty bowl on the coffee table after he’s had his fill, content to half watch Finn and luxuriate in the hazy warmth.

“So,” Finn leans into the touch and eats a spoonful of soup. “Do you always cook on the second date?”

He blinks at Finn. “What?”

Finn stares at him, pulling his lips between his teeth. “Is this - did I misread this?”

“No - no, I just -“ He takes a deep breath. “I would’ve made something more impressive if I knew.”

A smile breaks out on Finn’s face, slowly overtaking his features until Poe feels as if he’s watching the earth turning into the sunlight. “Poe, our first date was in space.”

He bites his lip to try to keep from smiling. “I don’t remember saying it was a date.”

Finn puts his bowl on the table and turns to face Poe more, his leg pressing against Poe’s. “We had an entire module to ourselves for long enough to watch a full movie  _ and _ watch the earth for a while. On a two week mission. Nobody’s put that much work into a first date - for me or anyone, ever, on or off this planet.”

Battle against smiling well and truly lost, he lets himself shift against the couch, just that much closer to Finn. “It was pretty great, huh?”

“Pretty great, yeah.”

“Out of this world, even.”

“Oh my God,” Finn’s grin doesn’t quite reach his eyes, falling far short of the laugh he’d been aiming for. 

“Everything okay?”

Finn nods quickly, glancing down at his hands. “You live in Houston, yeah? Like - permanently.”

Understanding weighs heavy in his chest. He nods. “I do.”

“And I’m going back to California next week.” Finn drags his lips through his teeth. “Are we totally out of our minds right now?”

He blinks. “What do you mean?”

“Our first date was in  _ space _ , Poe.” His eyes are bright as he emphasizes the word but it disappears nearly as soon as Poe registers it. “What if - would you still be interested in this if we hadn’t been up there together?”

He takes a breath, inhaling through his nose and exhaling through his mouth, the same as when he waits to feel the rockets come to life beneath him. “When we met, when you walked into the briefing room that first time, I didn’t really think too much about it - well, I tried not to, anyway. You were really cute, but I was working, you know? I’m responsible for everyone’s lives up there, I can’t let myself get distracted like that. Then you started talking about your work, and why this experiment was so important, and all of this stuff that I was barely following because all I could think about was how your eyes lit up when you talked.”

Finn stares at him. “Poe -”

“I fell really hard. How could I not? You’re a doctor  _ and _ astronaut and you have such a big heart and your nose wrinkles in this really cute way when you’re trying not to laugh - I don’t think I ever stood a chance.” He bites his lip. “But there was the mission, and I’ve heard the horror stories about crews that don’t get along. It’s not like if you’re in a bad mood up there you can just take a walk to cool your head, you know? I couldn’t do that to you, or to the rest of the crew. I - I care about all of my crew, but you’re different. You always have been, Finn. This isn’t just because of the mission.”

Finn nods slowly, his face devoid of anything that would give Poe any sort of clue as to what he’s thinking. “So what would this be?”

“I’m not a casual guy.” He squeezes his eyes shut and takes a breath. “Uh - I mean I don’t love the idea of being in a long distance relationship, but - we travelled millions of miles together, I figure we could handle a couple thousand between us. I could, um, it would be pretty easy for me to visit, and I’m - I don’t have to stay in Houston forever, if things go well, and -”

Finn kisses him.

He gasps, clutching at the soft fabric of Finn’s shirt. The kiss remains relatively chaste and yet Poe is utterly overwhelmed, dizzy from the heat of Finn’s mouth on his, the press of fingertips into his jaw. It’s simultaneously as if they were still floating in orbit and a glorious reminder of the best parts of being planetside, Finn’s body solid against his. Utterly trivial next to the vast adventure they’d just returned from and yet so important it makes Poe shiver. 

Finn breaks the kiss. Poe forces his eyes open after a long moment and immediately regrets wasting precious seconds where he could have spent them seeing Finn look at him like this.

Finn smiles. “I’ve wanted to do that for such a long time.”

He leans into Finn’s hands and plants a hand on Finn’s chest, pressing down just enough to feel his heartbeat. “You can do that again. Anytime you want.”

Finn does, pressing his lips to the corner of Poe’s mouth, his cheek, the edge of his jaw. He brushes his fingers over the short hairs at the back of Poe’s head. “I wouldn’t normally suggest this on a second date, but do you want to take a nap with me? I remember something about laying down.”

He laughs softly and tugs Finn up off the couch. “Yeah, c’mon.”

Finn follows him, fingers entwined. “Maybe for our third date we could do something mundane, like cliff jumping or white water rafting.”

He squeezes Finn’s hand, ready to set out on a new sort of adventure. 

**Author's Note:**

> i've had negative free time in the past year or so but i still love finnpoe and i've been on a huge space kick this summer and this started as many of my aus do and then turned into me spending weeks reading about nasa's shuttle program with absolutely zero regrets
> 
> thanks for reading!


End file.
